Things are going swimmingly until the Inquisitors at Pewsitter get wind of it and send the Voris Cult off like flying monkeys to hijack the entire thread with encomiums of adoration of their favorite demagogue and the typical accusations of Impurity against a faithful Catholic that are the Cult of Voris’ bread and butter–and which he constantly encourages. Nothing else matters to them–and certainly not the poor–other than the Dear Leader who tells them what their itching ears want to hear about their immense superiority to all us unwashed CINOs.

The whole thing is a cult and a toxic one. It peddles worship of Voris as “orthodoxy”, sends out flying monkeys to halt works of mercy so that false accusations can be leveled against a good woman and a demagogue can be exalted at the expense of the poor. It battles, not real evils, but people like Abp. Vigneron, Bp. Mulvey, the Knights of Columbus, SOLT, EWTN, the Register, CNA, and CatholicVote.org. It’s poison. And I sincerely hope I will be honored by inclusion on the Cult of Voris’ hit list right behind Simcha. Come and get me, you weenies.

Mark, first I should admit that I haven’t read a single remark in the combox … too long, and I suspect, too blood-pressure-raising for me today. But I wanted to tell you THANK YOU for jumping to Simcha’s defense. She is brilliant and a credit to the NCR. (And you are, too).

JohnK

I don’t find these kinds of posts helpful in any way. You have better things to do than put this kind of trash in the heads of your readers (most of whom would never know or care about this issue if you weren’t trumpeting it).

Mark Shea

So you prefer to simply passively stand by while a good woman gets beaten up?

Dan Ullmann

Mark, being new to your blog and seeing and hearing Michael Voris aplenty, can you direct me or explain to me what your isssues are with him and his organization? No disrespect intended, but it seems that jeolousy has reared its ugly head? Please help. God Bless!

One of the more tedious tropes his Cult has adopted is to adopt his character assassination of Catholic media people as “Profe$$ional Catholic$” who are, simultaneously “only in it for the money” and also, mirabile dictu, “jealous” of his financial success. His cult never detects any contradiction in these dumb charges. I don’t care about his success. There are other Catholics who have had much greater success, like my friends Scott Hahn and Steve Ray. The difference is, they are not demagogues who poison people against the Church and gather a cult around themselves. So please don’t insult my intelligence by saying “no disrespect intended” and then pulling this stupid mind-reading trick of ascribing to jealousy what I made perfectly plain in what I already wrote.

Ann fan

Reckless demagogue. Ah the Scott Hahn Steve Ray connection. What about Ross Hoffman? Another hero? It’s all about greater success. Their success is only within the box of new Church propaganda. False ecumenical, Communion in the hand, folks. No, not everyone is so easily led astray. Mr. Voris has gotten better every year and when he changed the title of his site to Militant Catholic the gloves were off. He is now a credit and a standard for many to learn from. We need more not so NICE teaching out there. Nice is putting souls into hell, which most new Church souls don’t believe in anyway so….along with the Actual Presence and reverence at the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. I don’t say that all Novus Ordo attendees are evil, most are lambs. They just don;t know and never will with the teaching on such sites as comes from the folks at EWTN and Stubbenville.

Anne

I’m a huge fan of Simcha and she has a valid point. But this is Fr Z’s cruise too – why no vilification of him? I just recently came upon these articles and this apparent venom you have for Voris is destructive. I first found his passion refreshing, and his view of the subject matter sound, but yes, he can be very harsh and quick to strike a hard blow, lacking tact and mercy. However, your language when dealing with him is just as harsh – just as judgemental – and destructive to the unity of the faith. We’re just coming out of the ‘Spirit of Vatican II’ and rediscovering what Catholicism actually is! Why the personal vendetta? A little unity and charity wouldn’t go amiss.

Mark Shea

Don’t you think it odd that you complain of divisiveness while simultaneously asking why I don’t attack more people?

Anne

I’m merely pointing out incongruities which point to this being about more than the Lenten cruise and its inappropriateness. People are generally of the belief that only *my* position is correct (or else we would not hold it) – no further to the right, nor to the left – but unless heresy or disobedience is involved, we should show a little charity. The Church has enemies both in and outside the church, those of us faithful to the Magisterium are not that numerous. A house divided against itself and all that…

Ann fan

The Church of Nice does not like Mr. Voris as he says it like it truly is Anne. You hit the nail on the head. The terms uncharitable, judgmental, divisive etc. roll off the tongue of neo cons like honey off a hot spoon. Say Traditional and they will smoke. And therein lies the truth. Orthodox is a term they prefer. This too is not correct as they are not as Orthodoxy is also pre Vatican II.

Joan

I believe today’s post at Canterbury Tales is excellent and this is what Mr. Voris has been speaking about through his media. I think that you have not understood his intentions.

http://sisterallie35.wordpress.com Allison

One of my friends works for Mr. Voris and one day we were talking about the dust-up about the whole “The Archdiocese of Detroit says that the group doesn’t have the right to call itself ‘Catholic’” schtick. They then talked about how it made them like Archbishop Vigneron (our dear Archbishop and a very faithful and holy man) less because he got involved and how he is trying to “put orthodox Catholics down.”

I told them a.) I don’t recall His Excellency ever saying anything about it. It was mostly some of the people in the Chancery (as far as I am aware) who made the big deal of it. b.) The Archbishop had every right to say what he did (if he did) since they do work out of the Archdiocese and the buck stops with him when it comes to the souls in the see. C.) Church politics are worse than secular politics because people hijack the whole “it’s for the greater glory of God” thing for their own purposes (I have seen it and it makes me angry) which may or may not be genuine.

Needless to say, that started to set them straight and then they looked into it more and their view of our dear Archbishop changed.

While his intentions are good (for the most part), I think his way of executing it is a bit flawed. Perhaps it can be classified as misguided zeal with a bit of hubris but who among us does not have a bit of a prideful streak? It’s just that it’s more pronounced in some.

Though, full disclosure, I have to say that I have been on the receiving end of some of the stuff Mr. Voris talks about with traditional Catholics being poo-poo’d and the like. I still love the Church. I still love the clergy. I think we need to pray for them and encourage them to greater faithfulness to the Church. While we cannot pass judgement on the soul of another, we can encourage one another to become saints.

TC

Glad to hear a counter-comment here, someone posts this Church Militant stuff over at the Catholic Answer forum, at least they have. I’ve watched some of it, did not agree with it, glad to have my sentiments confirmed.

John King

Mark Shea – you totally miss the picture here and I can only speculate why. Most people like to watch “The Vortex” because of the orthodoxy not because of Voris. Maybe there is a few weirdos out there who watch him the wrong reasons. The same could be said of any public figure. Recently “The Church Militant” made a change of presenters of the “Catholic News Roundup” segment. If they made a change of the presenter of the Vortex and he or she presented as well or better than Voris, then great! You are doing the same thing that you accuse this “The Cult of Personality” of doing. Your blog attacks them. The difference is that your indictment of them is…well.. “The Cult of Personality”??? What about the EWTN? Do they not have personality with Mother Angelica and Father Pacwa. What about Catholic Answers with Jimmy Akin? What kind of indictment is “The Cult of Personality”? The fact is every show has “The Cult of Personality” by your definition. Oh I get it, because these other personalities don’t say anything negative about the American Bishops. Well, Mother Angelica did some time ago and almost lost the network. Now the chickens have come home to roost for the Cardinal leading the attack. Are Catholics not to question what Priests and Bishops do or not do? Stop your “Cult of Personality” schtick and present rational arguments that would attract intelligent people to debate.

Ann fan

AMEN, you go John.

Midnight Rider

Let me start by saying I have no beef whatsoever with Simcha Fischer. With that touched on at the outset, I must admit that I am wondering why there is so much vitriol for Michael Voris.

I read stuff like Mr. Scourge-of Professional-Catholics-Who-Charges-Fat-Premiums-and-Accuses-Good-Bishops-of-Being-Gay-and-Good-Catholics-of-Being-Heretics-While-Mainstreaming-Nutty-Anti-Semite” and aside from the accusations of bishops being gay and anything antisemitic, how is the rest of the title not applicable to those apologists who basically have “donations drives” to get others to contribute money to them while they make accusations of various good Catholics who may not agree with them on matters not of dogma as being if not heretical than at the very least disobedient to the magisterium in areas where the magisterium either (1) has not required assent to a specific proposition or (2) something that falls into what would be the area of prudential judgments?

Unless there is of course something obliging or forcing folks to contribute $1000 to a Lenten cruise or something (and if there is, please point this out as it would indeed be deplorable), it sounds to a certain extent like sour grapes to me. Sour grapes of the “gee, those folks could be giving to MY apostolate instead of to Voris’ stuff” kind.

Midnight…you are astute and awake unlike most out there. The Pope is hopefully cleaning house as we write. RUMOR has it that Cardinals are being called to Rome and some are not complying. O gee. Isn’t this a surprise. I await to see if this rumor is true. I so pray it is. Time to do a bit of anathematizing and condemning in the Vatican as per pre Vatican II Popes. Hey I liked Pope Benedict, at least he instituted the Summorum Pontificum and put in writing that the Traditional Latin Mass was NOT to be abrogated. That took GUTS. Finally a Pope with guts.

Ann fan

Mr. Shea you are a thorn in the side of the Church. You are threatened by Traditional teaching and for some reason you childishly attack a person who defends the teachings of antiquity, you know, the Early Church Fathers and Popes prior to Vat. II. The Church IS older than 50+ years. There is a lot more to feed us than the banal teachings of EWTN, which you have to admit has fallen with Mother Angelica’s health. This neo con ex protestant ecumenical teaching must stop. Toxicity in the Church. He wrote a few good books but he is not St. Gregory. Lets face it most of what comes out of Stuppidville., oooops Stubenville is not to be taken seriously. Isn’t it being investigated? Rumor has it……

Wish I had come to visit while you were in Vancouver last month. But prudent thinking prevented it. You have blocked me on Facebook as I am too Traditional (Catholic that is). Nice to see you have your Margie (Donna) just like Ross Hoffman. What an example to follow. Good for you. God bless and good luck. You can fool some of the people some of the….oh you know this quote I am sure.

Ann fan

He wrote a few good books…Mr. Scott Hahn. Sorry left this out.

Ann fan

Waste of time. This is so Facebook. But challenge one word of Mr. Voris and I will be back. I wonder what Ann Burnhard is doing tonight. Burning Quorans I suspect. I love that woman. THAT is hard line.

Ann fan

There is a LOT of info here. Start with the two encyclicals (2 first lines). They are written by a Saint Pope, one of the holiest and bravest that ever lived. They will outline a lot of what Mr. Davies talks about. Pray before reading. The devil will not want you knowing this Julita, but never fear he is NOT the boss of us!!!

http://www.papalencyclicals.net/Pius10/p10moath.htm The Oath Against Modernism (All clergy used to take this Oath since Pius X. Now only the Fraternity and the Society of Pius X do now as far as I know. Why? Because if they did they could not obey Vat. II)

A lot to read below but please take the time all who think Tradition is your enemy. Tradition will, as always, keep the Church together in times of great persecution as is happening today. Remember the wolf in sheep’s clothing is not outside but inside our Holy Mother, the Church. Please pray for the Holy Father, he is already making strides to correct much of the heresy and wrong teaching. He is not a Liturgical Pope but remember we still have our last one residing in the Vatican and he IS. Always hope. For now I will leave with prayers and good wishes to all who hold to the teachings of antiquity….

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